''Veratrum viride'', known as Indian poke, corn-lily, Indian hellebore, false hellebore, green false hellebore, or giant false-helleborine, is a species of ''

Veratrum ''Veratrum'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Melanthiaceae. It occurs in damp habitats across much of temperate and subarctic Europe, Asia, and North America. ''Veratrum'' species are vigorous herbaceous perennials with highly poiso ...

'' native to eastern and western (but not central)

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

.Flora of North America
''Veratrum viride''
/ref>USDA Plants Profile
''Veratrum viride''
/ref> It is extremely

toxic Toxicity is the degree to which a chemical substance or a particular mixture of substances can damage an organism. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect on a subst ...

, and is considered a pest plant by farmers with livestock. The species has acquired a large number of other common names within its native range, including American false hellebore, American white hellebore, bear corn, big hellebore, corn lily, devil's bite, duck retten, itchweed, poor Annie, blue hellebore and tickleweed.

Description

''V. viride'' is a

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of t ...

perennial plant A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

reaching tall, with a solid green stem. The

leaves A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...

are spirally arranged, long and broad, elliptic to broad lanceolate ending in a short point, heavily ribbed and hairy on the underside. The

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

s are numerous, produced in a large branched

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed o ...

tall; each flower is long, with six green to yellow-green

tepal A tepal is one of the outer parts of a flower (collectively the perianth). The term is used when these parts cannot easily be classified as either sepals or petals. This may be because the parts of the perianth are undifferentiated (i.e. of very ...

s. The

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

is a capsule long, which splits into three sections at maturity to release the numerous flat diameter

seed A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiospe ...

s. The plant reproduces through

rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow hori ...

growth as well as seeds.Plants of British Columbia
''Veratrum viride''
/ref>Jepson Flor
''Veratrum viride''
/ref>Columbia River Gorge plants

/ref>

Varieties and similar species

There are two recognized

varieties Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

of ''V. viride'': *''Veratrum viride'' var. ''viride'' is found in eastern North America. It is differentiated by the erect or spreading side branches of the inflorescence. *''Veratrum viride'' var. ''eschscholzianum'' is found in western North America. It is differentiated by the drooping side branches of the inflorescence. The related western North American ''

Veratrum californicum ''Veratrum californicum'' (California corn lily, white or California false hellebore) is an extremely poisonous plant native to western North America, including the Sierra Nevada and Rocky Mountains, as far north as Washington and as far south ...

'' (white false hellebore, corn lily) can be distinguished from sympatric var. ''eschscholzianum'' by its whiter flowers and the erect side branches of the inflorescence.

Distribution and habitat

In eastern North America, var. ''viride'' occurs from southwestern

Labrador , nickname = "The Big Land" , etymology = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Canada , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 ...

and southern

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

south to northern

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. In the west, var. ''eschscholzianum'' occurs from

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

and

Northwest Territory The Northwest Territory, also known as the Old Northwest and formally known as the Territory Northwest of the River Ohio, was formed from unorganized western territory of the United States after the American Revolutionary War. Established in 1 ...

south through

Yukon Yukon (; ; formerly called Yukon Territory and also referred to as the Yukon) is the smallest and westernmost of Canada's three territories. It also is the second-least populated province or territory in Canada, with a population of 43,964 as ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...

, and

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

to northwestern

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

(Del Norte, Siskiyou, Trinity, and Humboldt Counties). It is found in wet soils in meadows, sunny streambanks, and open forests, occurring from sea level in the north of its range up to in the southeast and in the southwest.

Medicine

The plant is highly toxic, causing nausea and vomiting. If the poison is not evacuated, cold sweat and vertigo appear.

Respiration Respiration may refer to: Biology * Cellular respiration, the process in which nutrients are converted into useful energy in a cell ** Anaerobic respiration, cellular respiration without oxygen ** Maintenance respiration, the amount of cellula ...

slows, while cardiac rhythm and

blood pressure Blood pressure (BP) is the pressure of circulating blood against the walls of blood vessels. Most of this pressure results from the heart pumping blood through the circulatory system. When used without qualification, the term "blood pressure" r ...

fall. The toxic effects of veratrum

alkaloid Alkaloids are a class of basic, naturally occurring organic compounds that contain at least one nitrogen atom. This group also includes some related compounds with neutral and even weakly acidic properties. Some synthetic compounds of similar ...

s are directly induced by antagonism of

adrenergic receptor The adrenergic receptors or adrenoceptors are a class of G protein-coupled receptors that are targets of many catecholamines like norepinephrine (noradrenaline) and epinephrine (adrenaline) produced by the body, but also many medications like beta ...

s. It is used externally by several Native American nations. Although is rarely ever used in modern herbalism due to its concentration of various alkaloids, it has been used in the past against

high blood pressure Hypertension (HTN or HT), also known as high blood pressure (HBP), is a long-term medical condition in which the blood pressure in the arteries is persistently elevated. High blood pressure usually does not cause symptoms. Long-term high bl ...

and

rapid heartbeat Tachycardia, also called tachyarrhythmia, is a heart rate that exceeds the normal resting rate. In general, a resting heart rate over 100 beats per minute is accepted as tachycardia in adults. Heart rates above the resting rate may be normal (su ...

; a standardized extract of ''V. viride'' alkaloids known as ''alkavervir'' was used in the 1950s and 1960s as an

antihypertensive Antihypertensives are a class of drugs that are used to treat hypertension (high blood pressure). Antihypertensive therapy seeks to prevent the complications of high blood pressure, such as stroke and myocardial infarction. Evidence suggests tha ...

. The root contains even higher concentrations than the aerial parts.Plants for a Future
''Veratrum viride''
/ref>

Anecdote

Various sources mention its use by some Native Americans people to elect a new leader. This story appears to originate from an anecdote told by John Josselyn in his 1674 “ An Account of Two Voyages to New-England”. It is noteworthy that Josselyn’s "Account of Two Voyages" have been met with skepticism since their first publication.

“The ''English'' in ''New-England'' take white ''Hellebore,'' which operates as fairly with them, as with the ''Indians,'' who steeping of it in water sometime, give it to young lads gathered together a purpose to drink, if it come up they force them to drink again their vomit, (which they save in a Birchen-dish) till it stayes with them, & he that gets the victory of it is made Captain of the other lads for that year.“

The anecdote entered medical literature 161 years afterward, when retold by Osgood C. in an 1835 paper on ''Veratrum viride''. While quoting Josselyn, Osgood introduces a political connotation (election of their chiefs/entitled to command the rest) which is unclear in the original version.

" Its use in the election of their chiefs, is noticed by Joselin, an early visiter to this country, who calls it “ white hellebore.” According to this writer, that individual whose on the Veratrum Viride. stomach was least susceptible to its deleterious effects, was regarded as the “ strongest of the party, and entitled to command the rest.”Osgood C. (1835) Observations on the medicinal properties of the Veratrum viride.Am J Med Sci 16:296–309
/ref>

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2707753 viride Medicinal plants Flora of Subarctic America Plants described in 1789 Flora of Western Canada Flora of Eastern Canada Flora of the Northwestern United States Flora of the Northeastern United States Flora of the Southeastern United States Flora of the Southwestern United States Flora without expected TNC conservation status